President champions Rep. Maloney’s legislation in State of the Union Address

WASHINGTON – President Obama called attention to several initiatives sponsored by Congresswoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY) during his State of the Union Address last week. The President flagged the Credit Cardholders Bill of Rights, a bill Maloney muscled through Congress in 2009, as an example of the pro-middle class policies that have been the hallmark of his administration. The president also called for paid family leave and workplace flexibility legislation Maloney is working to pass.

“Pro-middle class policies like the Credit cardholders Bill of Rights have helped put money back in the pockets of middle class families,” said Maloney. “This bill has saved tens-of billions of dollars for the American people, but we shouldn’t stop there. We can do so much more to build strong and healthy families. That’s why I’m working to pass bills that provide paid parental leave to millions of American workers and make it easier to create flexible work arrangements so that more workplaces adapt to the demands of families in a 21st century economy.”

On Monday, Maloney re-introduced the Federal Employee Paid Parental Leave Act which would provide six weeks of paid leave for the birth of a child to all federal employees. The legislation passed with strong bipartisan support in the 111th Congress and is budget-neutral. President Obama called for passage of the legislation and flagged the need for paid-leave policies during the State of the Union. Maloney is also working to pass a bill that would provide paid parental leave to all Americans, and will soon re-introduce another bill to make it easier for employees to negotiate flextime arrangements without the fear of losing their jobs.

President Obama drew particular attention to the Credit Cardholders Bill of Rights, nothing “today, we have new tools to stop taxpayer-funded bailouts, and a new consumer watchdog to protect us from predatory lending and abusive credit card practices.” Estimates show that this law, which Maloney authored, has saved the American people anywhere from $63 billion to over $100 billion over the past 5 years.